A pregnant mother of two has been sentenced to one year in prison after accidentally hitting a motorcyclist with her car, resulting in his death.
The High Criminal Court found the woman guilty of causing the death of 21-year-old expatriate Marwan Omar after failing to exercise the utmost caution and care while driving.
The 27-year-old defendant – a Gulf national – was also convicted of causing property damage and driving without following road signs and lane markings.
However, judges granted her a suspended sentence on the condition that she pays a BD100 fee, noting that she is currently in her second trimester of pregnancy.
The court heard that the collision happened on November 9 on Salah Aldeen Alayoobi Avenue in the Seef area, when the defendant was crossing an intersection, with her sisters in the vehicle.
Instead of entering her designated lane, she veered into an adjacent lane and collided with the victim, who was riding a Honda Unicorn motorcycle, as well as another car travelling beside him.
Mr Omar was grievously wounded by the collision and died on November 18 – nine days after the incident.
His death certificate stated that the expat from Okara, Pakistan, died in Salmaniya Medical Complex from physical trauma.
In a defence memo, the suspect’s lawyer attempted to completely deflect blame from his client, claiming that she had nothing to do with the young expat’s death.
Lawyer Bander Shamal Al Doseri argued that since the victim was conscious enough to give a testimony, something must have occurred between that time and his death that ultimately caused his demise.
“The victim was in a health condition that allowed him to speak to the Public Prosecution,” read the memo.
“This leads us to believe that there may have been health complications, or a medical error, that caused the victim’s death.
“There is much doubt about the direct cause of his death, and any doubt should be interpreted in the defendant’s favour.”
He further claimed that the Saudi woman was in the correct lane and was simply making a turn based on an online navigation tool, blaming the accident on the map she was looking at.
He added that the defendant’s pregnancy is considered high-risk because she is taking immunosuppressive medication, as confirmed by medical documents issued by her country’s Health Ministry.
The lawyer pleaded with the judges to grant the defendant the utmost mercy, noting that she is midway through her pregnancy and is the mother of two children.
zainab@gdnmedia.bh
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